Restrictive Control and Information Pathologies in Organizations

Although the relation of power to knowledge is an often discussed theme, a psychological and sociological scrutiny of the issue is lacking. A new conceptual and theoretical approach to this issue is presented here that distingushes between restrictive and promotive control. Restrictive control is a form of power exertion in which one actor pushes his wishes through against the interests of another actor. In contrast, if an actor influences the other in line with his or her interests, this is called promotive control. Information pathologies, i.e., avoidable failures of distributed information processing, are introduced as an inverse measure for the quality and quantity of knowledge production. It is hypothesized that restrictive control has negative consequences for the production of new or better knowledge, because it induces information pathologies that in turn lower the effectiveness of joint action. These two hypotheses are tested in a study on 21 successful and 21 unsuccessful innovations with a dual qualitative and quantitative approach. The interpretive analysis of interviews with the main actors of each innovation case as well as the statistical analysis of questionnaire responses by the same actors strongly corroborate both hypotheses. Methodological problems, theoretical perspectives, and practical consequences are discussed.     

Implementierung von Coaching für Schulleitung und Schulaufsicht

Implementation of coaching for principals and supervisory school authorityGerman schools will have to improve the quality of their work to be able to compete on an international level. School development is also personnel development. Establishing professionalism of school executives (among others by coaching) plays a major role in this matter. First of all the author describes the implementation process of internal coaching for principals and thereafter for officers of the supervisory school authority. In doing so, he also points out problems that can arise during such a project. The evaluations of surveys prove the acceptance and importance of coaching for this target group. Finally, possible future coaching offers for school executives are addressed.     

Some Properties of the Hazard Function of the Two-Mutation Clonal Expansion Model

We discuss the hazard function of the two-mutation clonal expansion model with time-dependent parameters, with particular emphasis on identifiability of the parameters. We explicitly construct identifiable parameter combinations, and illustrate the properties of the hazard function under perturbations of the underlying biological parameters.     

The intersection of social protection and mobilities: a move towards a ‘Practical Utopia’ research agenda

Currently, a number of contributions in mobility studies are looking for fruitful intersections with other ‘adjacent’ approaches . In this spirit, our theoretical paper argues to study one particular aspect: the intersection of social protection and mobilities. Currently, the provision of social services in the ‘West’ is strongly entrenched within nation-state logics, which assume that clients’ immobility is a precondition of service delivery and that national citizenship is the desirable conditionality of gaining social rights. To overcome such a wide-spread conflation of social security with state security, we introduce the heuristic concept ‘social protection’. It allows social security to be imagined beyond a state-centric perspective and avoids the pitfalls of either a citizenship or a migration approach by taking on a mobility perspective. Thus, for scholars anchored in mobility studies we propose how to develop a social security perspective in a progressive way. For readers from other areas, e.g. citizenship, migration or social policy, we will show how a mobility perspective enriched by a No Border approach can overcome a narrow Western, statist and static perspective on social security. Our goal is to conceptually open up what we call a ‘practical utopia’ research agenda, one that expands our political horizons for future and present socialities.     

‘I Just Don't Agree’: A Voice-Oriented Analysis of An IFPS Case of Alleged Child Maltreatment

In contrast to the many outcome studies of Intensive Family Preservation Services (IFPS), little is known about the underlying personal and relational dynamics of family crisis interventions. This article focuses on the core evolving dynamics of the changing self-presentations of a parent involved in an intensive home-based family preservation case of alleged child maltreatment. Three key family intervention sessions were videotaped and transcribed including both verbal and nonverbal behavior. The Listening Guide Method – a theoretically flexible, qualitative, relationally oriented method of in-depth interpretative analysis – served as our guide for this case analysis. In the processes of change toward a jointly constructed meaningful narrative on responsibility and self-care, two key elements emerged as playing a pivotal role: (1) the momentum of a potential referral of children to out-of-home care that precedes the start of an IFPS intervention and (2) the rhizomatic or root-like intertwinement of the voices of both parent and therapist with respect to the rationale for any involvement of society in the family. We argue that discourses on imminent placement in the context of family preservation deserve a genuine and valuable position in the initial discourse of a family therapist when entering a family in the context of crisis intervention. Both in understanding and driving any processes of change, we may need to reconsider our own willingness to step into the blending interplay of discourse and counter-discourse with our clients on the subject of our often drastic intervention. Consequently, we may read this narrative analysis as an invitation to reflect on the conceptualization of ‘client readiness’ in psychotherapy and to shift our thinking on preconditions for therapy from a client's readiness toward a therapist's attentiveness to listen.     

Was ist hier los?

In our prior article in this issue, we establish that although they are related, organizational and group dynamics are in fact very different. In this second article, we go on to discuss some of the challenges that this poses for consultants. We describe the interplay of factors affecting the development of the dynamics within an organization and explore approaches to acquiring practical knowledge about an organization’s dynamics. Finally, we ask how useful group dynamics skills are for providing consultancy services within and to organizations and consider where and how specific organizational dynamics skills can be acquired.     

Forms of Capital and Habitus in the Decision to Go on Academic Exchange

Although Canadian universities have made internationalization a strategic priority, only few Canadian students currently participate in any international study opportunities. Drawing on interviews with Canadian students who were about to spend some of their undergraduate education abroad as exchange students, or had recently returned from a study exchange, we argue that despite the importance of relatively high costs associated with international study experiences, cultural factors play a more important role in enabling the decision to study abroad. Being habitually exposed to travel in one's family, and having been encouraged to travel independently as a teenager or young adult emerge as important precursors to our participants’ decision to take part in study exchanges. Although one needs to engage critically with university administrators’ current preoccupation with internationalization, being exposed to an extended time abroad has shown to have positive effects, especially for otherwise underprivileged students. Given the exploratory nature of this study, we conclude with suggestions for further research aimed at confirming our findings and developing policy.     

Setting Priorities in the National Campaign Against Drug Abuse

In its ‘National Campaign Against Drug Abuse’, the Federal Government has decided to give top priority in the 1987 financial year to preventing the use of heroin and cocaine, particularly among the young. After reviewing the drug consumption habits of North Queenslanders, we conclude that this decision does not address the most immediate drug-related health problems of the region. Our data suggest not only that legal drugs pose a far greater threat to the health and welfare of Australian society but also that drug abuse is primarily concentrated within the adult population.